For millions of immigrants, Ellis Island was the gateway to the United States -- the country's busiest reception and processing center from 1892 to 1954. These historical photographs capture the variety of cultures among those immigrants -- they were taken by Augustus Frederick Sherman, who worked there as a clerk. They were not taken for official purposes. Sherman was simply fascinated by the people he was meeting on a daily basis.
Portraits Of Ellis Island Immigrants 1902-1913
Georgian horsemen (circa 1906). Georgia has a long tradition of horsemanship and these two men were part of a larger group invited by Buffalo Bill to be part of his show.
Three Montenegrin men.
Romanian shepherds (circa 1910).
This German family is described as coming from eastern Europe, but there are no precise details of their origin.
A Russian mother with her baby. At the time of the photo, the child was 11 months old and weighed 55 pounds (25 kilograms).
Wallachian woman with her three young children. Wallachia or Walachia, is a historical and geographical region of Romania north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. The handwritten note says Austria -- some of these areas were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire prior to World War I.
A Ruthenian woman (circa 1906). The term Ruthenian is applied to some inhabitants of a cross-border region around the northern Carpathian Mountains, including western Ukraine, eastern Slovakia, and southern Poland.
Serbian Roma (circa 1906).
This photo, dated April 4, 1911, bears the description "Hindu Boy." It is not stated where he comes from.
Wilhelm Schleich, a miner from Hohenpeissenberg, Bavaria, Germany (circa 1906).
Three Dutch women.
An Albanian soldier.
A Romanian piper...
... and an Italian one (May 12, 1908).
Three young women from Slovakia.
A Moroccan family.